Irish general election, 1966

The Irish general election, 1966 was held on 1 January 1966. The people of Ireland elected a new Dail Eireann, and Finbar Brannigan's Fianna Fail government remained in power after yet another landslide victory over the Irish Labor Party.

History
In 1961, Fianna Fail was elected to power in a landslide victory, with Finbar Brannigan becoming the new Taoiseach. Under Brannigan's administration, Ireland became an affluent society, although an economic scare in late 1961 led to the government temporarily decreasing government spending. Brannigan was popular for carrying out his promise to maintain lowered tax levels, as well as for his decision to not enter into an alliance with the United Kingdom. Ireland maintained its prosperous neutrality, and the country's politics were stable for the full duration of Brannigan's first four-year term.

On 1 July 1965, the government was obliged to call new elections, with the Irish Labor Party again being the main competitor to Fianna Fail. In the last election, the Labour Party had been defeated in a landslide, and it was hard-pressed to find points on which it could defeat the Fianna Fail government. The Labour Party's manifesto reiterated its commitment to high protective tariffs, increased and permanent government expenditures on social, educational, and administrative spending, and to furthering civil rights in the country. However, Fianna Fail rode high on a wave of popular support for economic liberalism in the aftermath of the 1961 election, as the party had been able to cut both spending and taxes and eliminate debt.

The election was swift, and Fianna Fail again won in a landslide. The biggest loser of the election was Sinn Fein, many of whose socialist voters (over 3% of its vote from the previous election) defected to the Labour Party. Fianna Fail won with a similar percentage to how it had won in the last election, while the Labour Party increased its vote share by around 4%. Nevertheless, Fianna Fail won in a clear landslide in all areas but the area around County Dublin, typically a leftist stronghold, in which it won by a closer margin. The election prepared Fianna Fail for several more years of rule, and new elections were held in 1967 to increase Fianna Fail's share of the vote.

Results

 * Fianna Fail glyph.png Fianna Fail - 53.97%


 * Irish Labor Party glyph.png Irish Labor Party - 25.62%


 * Fine Gael glyph.png Fine Gael - 12.3%


 * Sinn Fein logo.jpg Sinn Fein - 8.1%